Andersen's winter tales list. Tales and stories. Andersen's independent life

On the roof of the outermost house in a small town nestled a stork. In it sat a mother with four chicks, which stuck their little black beaks out of the nest - they had not yet had time to turn red. Not far from the nest, on the very ridge of the roof, stood, stretched out at attention and tucking one leg under him, dad himself; he tucked his leg in so as not to stand idle on the clock. One would think that it was carved from wood, before it was motionless.

"That's important, that's important! he thought. - There is a sentry at my wife's nest! Who knows that I am her husband? They might think that I am dressed up here on guard. That's important!" And he continued to stand on one leg.

Children were playing in the street; seeing a stork, the most mischievous of the boys sang, as best he could and remembered, an old song about storks; everyone else followed suit:

Stork, white stork,

What do you stand all day

Like a clock

On one leg?

Or do you want kids?

Save yours?

You're busy in vain, -

We will catch them!

We'll hang one

Let's throw another into the pond,

We'll kill the third

The youngest is alive

On the fire we will throw

And we won't ask you!

Listen to what the boys are singing! - said the chicks. "They say they'll hang us and drown us!"

You don't have to pay attention to them! their mother told them. - Just don't listen, nothing will happen!

But the boys did not let up, they sang and teased the storks; only one of the boys, named Peter, did not want to stick to his comrades, saying that it was a sin to tease animals. And the mother consoled the chicks.

Never mind! she said. - Look how calmly your father is standing, and it's on one leg!

And we are scared! - said the chicks and deeply, deeply hid their heads in the nest.

The next day, the children again poured out into the street, saw the storks, and again sang:

Let's hang one

Let's throw another into the pond ...

So they hang us and drown us? - the chicks asked again.

Yes, no, no! - answered the mother. "But soon we'll start school!" You need to learn to fly! When you learn, we will go with you to the meadow to visit the frogs. They will squat in front of us in the water and sing: “qua-qua-qua!” And we will eat them - that will be fun!

And then? - asked the chicks.

Then all of us, storks, will gather for autumn maneuvers. That's when you need to be able to fly properly! It is very important! Whoever flies badly, the general will pierce with his sharp beak! So, try your best when the learning begins!

So they will stab us after all, as the boys said! Listen, they're singing again!

Listen to me, not them! - said the mother. - After the maneuvers, we will fly away from here, far, far away, over high mountains, over dark forests, to warm lands, to Egypt! There are triangular stone houses; their tops rest against the very clouds, and they are called pyramids. They were built a long time ago, so long ago that no stork can even imagine! There is also a river that overflows, and then the whole coast is covered with silt! You walk on your own mud and eat frogs!

O! - said the chicks.

Yes! Here's the charm! There, all day long, you only do what you eat. But while it will be so good for us there, not a single leaf will remain on the trees, it will be so cold that the clouds will freeze in pieces and will fall to the ground in white crumbs!

She wanted to tell them about the snow, but she didn't know how to explain it well.

And these bad boys will also freeze in pieces? - asked the chicks.

No, they will not freeze in pieces, but they will have to freeze. They will sit and be bored in a dark room and will not dare stick their nose out into the street! And you will fly in foreign lands, where flowers bloom and the warm sun shines brightly.

A little time passed, the chicks grew up, they could already get up in the nest and look around. Father the stork every day brought them nice frogs, little snakes, and all sorts of other goodies that he could get. And how he amused the chicks with various funny things! He took out his tail with his head, clicked his beak, as if a ratchet was sitting in his throat, and told them various swamp stories.

Well, now it's time to start learning! - the mother told them one fine day, and all four chicks had to crawl out of the nest onto the roof. My fathers, how they staggered, balanced their wings, and yet they almost fell off!

Look at me! - said the mother. - Head like this, legs like this! One-two! One-two! This is what will help you make your way in life! - and she made a few flaps of her wings. The chicks jumped clumsily and - bam! - everything is so stretched! They were still heavy to lift.

I do not want to study! - said one chick and climbed back into the nest. - I do not want to fly to warmer climes!

So you want to freeze here in the winter? Do you want the boys to come and hang you, drown you or burn you? Wait, I'll call them now!

Ay, no, no! - said the chick and again jumped onto the roof.

On the third day they were already flying somehow and imagined that they could also stay in the air on spread wings. “There is no need to wave them all the time,” they said. “You can also rest.” They did so, but ... they immediately plopped onto the roof. I had to work again with wings.

At this time, the boys gathered in the street and sang:

Stork, white stork!

How about we fly off and peck out their eyes? - asked the chicks.

No, don't! - said the mother. - Listen to me better, this is much more important! One two Three! Now let's fly to the right; one two Three! Now to the left, around the pipe! Fine! The last flapping of the wings was such a wonderful success that I will let you go with me to the swamp tomorrow. Many other lovely families with children will gather there - so show yourself! I want you to be the cutest of all. Keep your heads up, it's much prettier and more impressive!

But do we really not take revenge on these bad boys? - asked the chicks.

Let them shout whatever they want! You will fly to the clouds, see the country of the pyramids, and they will freeze here in winter, they will not see a single green leaf or a sweet apple!

But we will still take revenge! - the chicks whispered to each other and continued learning.

The most fervent of all the children was the smallest, the one that was the first to sing a song about storks. He was no more than six years old, although the chicks thought he was a hundred years old - after all, he was much larger than their father and mother, and what did the chicks know about the years of children and adults! And now all the revenge of the chicks was to fall upon this boy, who was the instigator and the most restless of mockers. The chicks were terribly angry with him and the more they grew up, the less they wanted to endure insults from him. In the end, the mother had to promise them somehow to take revenge on the boy, but not until just before they flew off to warmer climes.

Let's see first how you will behave on big maneuvers! If things go wrong and the general pierces your chest with his beak, the boys will be right. We'll see!

You'll see! - said the chicks and diligently began to exercise. Every day things went better, and finally they began to fly so easily and beautifully that it was just a pleasure!

Autumn has come; storks began to prepare for departure for the winter to warmer climes. That's how the maneuvers went! Storks flew back and forth over forests and lakes: they had to test themselves - after all, a huge journey was ahead! Our chicks excelled and got on the test not zero with a tail, but twelve with a Frog and a snake! It could not have been better for them than this score: after all, frogs and snakes could be eaten, which they did.

The famous Danish storyteller Hans Christian Andersen was born on a fine spring day on April 2, 1805 in Odnes, which is located on the island of Funen. Andersen's parents were poor. Father Hans Andersen was a shoemaker, and mother Anna Marie Andersdatter worked as a laundress, and was also not from a noble family. From childhood, she lived in poverty, begging on the street, and after her death she was buried in a cemetery for the poor.

Nevertheless, there is a legend in Denmark that Andersen was of royal origin, because in his early biography he mentioned more than once that in childhood he had to play with the Danish Prince Frits himself, who eventually became King Federick VII .

According to Andersen's fantasy, their friendship with Prince Frits continued throughout life and until the death of Frits. After the death of the monarch, only relatives and he was admitted to the tomb of the late king ...

And Andersen gave rise to such fantasy thoughts, the stories of his father, as if he were some kind of relative of the king himself. From early childhood, the future writer showed a great propensity for daydreaming and a violent imagination. He repeatedly made impromptu home performances in the house, played out various scenes that caused laughter and mockery from his peers.

The year 1816 became difficult for the young Anders, his father died and he had to earn his own living. He began his working life as an apprentice at a weaver, after which he worked as a tailor's assistant. The boy's labor activity continued at the cigarette factory...

From early childhood, a boy with big blue eyes had a rather closed character, he always liked to sit somewhere in a corner and play puppet theater (his favorite game). He carried his love for the puppet theater in his soul throughout his life ...

From early childhood, Andersen was distinguished by emotionality, irascibility and arrogant susceptibility, which led to physical punishment in the schools of that time. Such reasons forced the boy's mother to send him to a Jewish school, where various kinds of executions were not practiced.

Therefore, Andersen forever kept in touch with the Jewish people, knew their traditions and culture very well. He even wrote several fairy tales and short stories on Jewish themes. But, unfortunately, they were not translated into Russian.

Youth

Already at the age of 14, the boy went to the capital of Denmark, Copenhagen. Letting him go so far, his mother really hoped that he would soon return back. Leaving his house, the boy made a kind of sensational statement, he said: "I'm going there to become famous!". He also wanted to find a job. She should be to his liking, that is, work in the theater, which he liked so much and which he loved very much.

He received funds for the trip on the recommendation of a man in whose house he often staged impromptu performances. The first year of life in Copenhagen did not advance the boy to the dream of working in the theater. He somehow came to the house of a famous (at that time) singer and, moved by feelings, began to ask her to help him get a job in the theater. To get rid of a strange and clumsy teenager, the lady promised to help him. But she never kept her promise. Many years later, she somehow confesses to him that at that moment she mistook him for a person whose mind was clouded ...

In those years, Hans Christian himself was a lanky, awkward teenager with a long nose and thin limbs. In fact, he was an analogue of the Ugly Duckling. But he had a pleasant voice in which he expressed his requests, and whether for this reason, or simply out of pity, Hans was nevertheless accepted into the bosom of the Royal Theater, despite all his external defects. Unfortunately, he was given supporting roles. He did not achieve success in the theater, and with a brittle voice (age), he was soon fired altogether ...

But Andersen at that time was already composing a play that had five acts. He wrote a petition letter to the king, in which he convincingly asked the monarch to give money for the publication of his work. The book also included poems by the writer. Hans did everything to buy the book, that is, he carried out advertising campaigns in the newspaper, announcing the publication, but the expected sales did not follow. But he did not want to give up and took his book to the theater, hoping to put on a performance based on his play. But here, too, failure awaited him. He was refused, motivating the refusal by the complete lack of professional experience of the author ...

However, he was given a chance and offered to study. Because he had a very strong desire to prove himself extraordinary ...

People who sympathized with the poor teenager sent a request to the King of Denmark himself, in which they asked to allow the teenager to study. And “His Majesty” listened to the requests, allowing Hans to study at school, first in the city of Slagels, and then in the city of Elsinore, and at the expense of the state treasury ...

This turn of events, by the way, suited the talented teenager, because now he did not need to think about how to earn a living. But science at school was not easy for Andersen, firstly, he was much older than the students with whom he studied, and experienced some discomfort about this. Also, he was constantly subjected to merciless criticism from the rector of the educational institution, about which he was too worried .... Very often he saw this man in his nightmares. After that, he will say about the years spent within the walls of the school, that it was the darkest time in his life ...

Having completed his studies in 1827, he was never able to master spelling, and until the end of his life he made grammatical errors in writing ...

In his personal life, he was also unlucky, he was never married and had no children of his own ...

Creation

The first success for the writer was brought by a fantastic story called "A Walking Journey from the Holmen Canal to the Eastern End of Amager", which was published in 1833. For this work, the writer received a reward (from the king), which allowed him to travel abroad, which he so dreamed of ...

This fact became an impromptu launch pad for Anderson, and he began to write many different literary works (including the famous Tales, which made him famous). Once again, the writer makes an attempt to find himself on the stage in 1840, but the second attempt, like the first, does not bring him complete satisfaction ...

But on the other hand, in the writing field, he has some success, having published his collection called “A Book with Pictures without Pictures”. “Tales” also had a continuation, which in 1838 came out in the second edition, and in 1845 “Tales - 3” appeared ...

He becomes a famous writer, and famous not only in his own country, but also in European countries. In the summer of 1847, he was able to visit England for the first time, where he was met triumphantly ...

He continues to try to write plays, novels, trying to become famous as a playwright and novelist. At the same time, he hates his fairy tales, which brought him true fame. Nevertheless, fairy tales from his pen appear again and again. The last fairy tale he wrote appeared around Christmas 1872. In the same year, through negligence, the writer fell out of bed and was badly injured. He never managed to recover from the injuries received during the fall (although he lived after the fall for another three whole years). The famous storyteller died in the summer of 1875 on August 4. He was buried at the Assistens Cemetery in Copenhagen...

There are few people in the world who do not know the name of the great writer Hans Christian Andersen. More than one generation has grown up on the works of this master of the pen, whose works have been translated into 150 languages ​​of the world. In almost every home, parents read bedtime stories to their children about the Princess and the Pea, Spruce, and little Thumbelina, whom a field mouse tried to marry off to a greedy mole neighbor. Or children watch films and cartoons about the Little Mermaid or about the girl Gerda, who dreamed of rescuing Kai from the cold hands of the callous Snow Queen.

The world described by Andersen is amazing and beautiful. But along with the magic and the flight of fantasy, there is a philosophical thought in his fairy tales, because the writer devoted his work to both children and adults. Many critics agree that under the shell of Andersen's naivete and simple style of narration lies a deep meaning, the task of which is to give the reader the necessary food for thought.

Childhood and youth

Hans Christian Andersen (generally accepted Russian spelling, Hans Christian would be more correct) was born on April 2, 1805 in the third largest city in Denmark, Odense. Some biographers assured that Andersen was the illegitimate son of the Danish king Christian VIII, but in fact the future writer grew up and was brought up in a poor family. His father, also named Hans, worked as a shoemaker and barely made ends meet, and his mother Anna Marie Andersdatter worked as a laundress and was an illiterate woman.

The head of the family believed that his ancestry began from a noble dynasty: the paternal grandmother told her grandson that their family belonged to a privileged social class, but these speculations were not confirmed and were challenged over time. There are many rumors about Andersen's relatives, which to this day excite the minds of readers. For example, they say that the grandfather of the writer - a carver by profession - was considered crazy in the town, because he made incomprehensible figures of people with wings, similar to angels, out of wood.

Hans Sr. introduced the child to literature. He read to his offspring "1001 nights" - traditional Arabic tales. Therefore, every evening, little Hans plunged into the magical stories of Scheherazade. Also, the father and son loved to take walks in the park in Odense and even visited the theater, which made an indelible impression on the boy. In 1816 the writer's father died.

The real world was a severe test for Hans, he grew up as an emotional, nervous and sensitive child. In such a state of mind of Andersen, the local bully, who simply distributes cuffs, and teachers are to blame, because in those troubled times, punishment with rods was commonplace, so the future writer considered school an unbearable torture.

When Andersen flatly refused to attend classes, the parents assigned the young man to a charity school for poor children. After receiving his primary education, Hans became an apprentice weaver, then retrained as a tailor, and later worked in a cigarette factory.

Andersen's relations with colleagues in the workshop, to put it mildly, did not work out. He was constantly embarrassed by vulgar anecdotes and narrow-minded jokes of workers, and one day, under the general laughter, Hans pulled down his pants to make sure he was a boy or a girl. And all because in childhood the writer had a thin voice and often sang during the shift. This event forced the future writer to completely withdraw into himself. The only friends of the young man were wooden dolls, once made by his father.

When Hans was 14 years old, in search of a better life, he moved to Copenhagen, which at that time was considered the "Scandinavian Paris". Anna Marie thought that Andersen would leave for the capital of Denmark for a short time, so she let her beloved son go with a light heart. Hans left his father's house because he dreamed of becoming famous, he wanted to learn acting and play on the stage of the theater in classical productions. It is worth saying that Hans was a lanky young man with a long nose and limbs, for which he received the offensive nicknames "stork" and "lamppost".

Andersen was also teased in childhood as a “playwriter”, because the boy’s house had a toy theater with rag “actors”. A diligent young man with a funny appearance gave the impression of an ugly duckling, who was accepted into the Royal Theater out of pity, and not because he was an excellent soprano. On the stage of the theater, Hans played minor roles. But soon his voice began to break, so classmates, who considered Andersen primarily a poet, advised the young man to concentrate on literature.

Jonas Collin, a Danish statesman who was in charge of finance during the reign of Frederick VI, was very fond of a young man unlike everyone else and convinced the king to pay for the education of a young writer.

Andersen studied at the prestigious Slagels and Elsinore schools (where he sat at the same desk with students 6 years younger than himself) at the expense of the treasury, although he was not a diligent student: Hans never mastered the letter and made multiple spelling and punctuation errors all his life in a letter. Later, the storyteller recalled that he had nightmares about his student years, because the rector constantly criticized the young man to the nines, and, as you know, Andersen did not like this.

Literature

During his lifetime, Hans Christian Andersen wrote poetry, short stories, novels and ballads. But for all readers, his name is primarily associated with fairy tales - there are 156 works in the track record of the master of the pen. However, Hans disliked being called a children's writer and claimed to write for both boys and girls and adults. It got to the point that Andersen ordered that there should not be a single child on his monument, although initially the monument was supposed to be surrounded by children.

Illustration for Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale "The Ugly Duckling"

Hans gained recognition and fame in 1829, when he published the adventure story "Hiking from the Holmen Canal to the Eastern End of Amager". Since then, the young writer did not leave his pen and inkwell and wrote literary works one after another, including fairy tales that glorified him, into which he introduced a system of high genres. True, novels, short stories and vaudevilles were given to the author hard - at the moments of writing, he seemed to suffer a creative crisis in spite.

Illustration for Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale "Wild Swans"

Andersen drew inspiration from everyday life. In his opinion, everything in this world is beautiful: a flower petal, a small bug, and a spool of thread. Indeed, if we recall the works of the creator, then even each galosh or pea from a pod has an amazing biography. Hans relied both on his own fantasy and on the motifs of the folk epic, thanks to which he wrote The Flint, The Wild Swans, The Swineherd and other stories published in the collection Tales Told to Children (1837).

Illustration for the fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen "The Little Mermaid"

Andersen loved to make protagonists of characters who are looking for a place in society. This includes Thumbelina, the Little Mermaid, and the Ugly Duckling. Such characters make the author sympathetic. All Andersen's stories from cover to cover are saturated with philosophical meaning. It is worth recalling the fairy tale "The King's New Clothes", where the emperor asks two rogues to sew an expensive garment for him. However, the outfit turned out to be difficult and consisted entirely of "invisible threads". The crooks assured the customer that only fools would not see the extremely thin fabric. Thus, the king flaunts around the palace in an indecent form.

Illustration for the fairy tale "Thumbelina" by Hans Christian Andersen

He and his courtiers do not notice the intricate dress, but are afraid to make themselves fools if they admit that the ruler is walking around in what his mother gave birth to. This tale began to be interpreted as a parable, and the phrase "And the king is naked!" included in the list of winged expressions. It is noteworthy that not all Andersen’s fairy tales are saturated with luck, not all of the writer’s manuscripts contain the “deusexmachina” technique, when a random coincidence that saves the protagonist (for example, the prince kisses the poisoned Snow White) seems to appear out of nowhere by God’s will.

Illustration for the fairy tale "The Princess and the Pea" by Hans Christian Andersen

Hans is loved by adult readers for not drawing a utopian world where everyone lives happily ever after, but, for example, without a twinge of conscience sends a steadfast tin soldier into a burning fireplace, dooming a lonely little man to death. In 1840, the master of the pen tried his hand at the genre of miniature short stories and published the collection A Book with Pictures without Pictures, in 1849 he wrote the novel Two Baronesses. Four years later, the book To Be or Not to Be was published, but all Andersen's attempts to establish himself as a novelist were in vain.

Personal life

The personal life of the failed actor, but the eminent writer Andersen is a mystery shrouded in darkness. Rumor has it that throughout the existence of the great writer remained in the dark about intimacy with women or men. There is an assumption that the great storyteller was a latent homosexual (as evidenced by the epistolary heritage), he had close friendly relations with friends Edward Collin, the crown duke of Weimar and with the dancer Harald Schraff. Although there were three women in the life of Hans, the matter did not go beyond fleeting sympathy, not to mention marriage.

The first chosen one of Andersen was the sister of a school friend Riborg Voigt. But the indecisive young man did not dare to talk to the object of his desire. Louise Collin - the writer's next potential bride - stopped any attempts at courtship and ignored the fiery stream of love letters. The 18-year-old girl preferred Andersen to a wealthy lawyer.

In 1846, Hans fell in love with the opera singer Jenny Lind, who was nicknamed "The Swedish Nightingale" because of her sonorous soprano voice. Andersen guarded Jenny backstage and presented the beauty with poems and generous gifts. But the charming girl was in no hurry to reciprocate the storyteller's sympathy, but treated him like a brother. When Andersen learned that the singer had married the British composer Otto Goldschmidt, Hans plunged into depression. Cold-hearted Jenny Lind became the prototype of the Snow Queen from the writer's fairy tale of the same name.

Illustration for Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale "The Snow Queen"

Andersen was unlucky in love. Therefore, it is not surprising that the storyteller, upon arrival in Paris, visited the red light districts. True, instead of debauchery all night long with frivolous young ladies, Hans talked with them, sharing the details of his unhappy life. When an acquaintance of Andersen hinted to him that he was visiting brothels for other purposes, the writer was surprised and looked at his interlocutor with obvious disgust.

It is also known that Andersen was a devoted admirer, talented writers met at a literary meeting held by the Countess of Blessington in her salon. After this meeting, Hans wrote in his diary:

"We went out on the veranda, I was happy to talk to the living writer of England, whom I love most."

After 10 years, the storyteller again arrived in England and came as an uninvited guest to Dickens' house to the detriment of his family. As time passed, Charles ceased correspondence with Andersen, and the Dane sincerely did not understand why all his letters remained unanswered.

Death

In the spring of 1872, Andersen fell out of bed, hitting the floor hard, because of which he received multiple injuries from which he never recovered.

Later, the writer was diagnosed with liver cancer. On August 4, 1875 Hans died. The great writer is buried in the Assistance Cemetery in Copenhagen.

Bibliography

• 1829 - "Traveling on foot from the Holmen Canal to the eastern cape of the island of Amager"
• 1829 - "Love on the Nikolaev Tower"
• 1834 - "Agneta and Vodyanoy"
• 1835 - "Improviser" (Russian translation - in 1844)
• 1837 - "Only a violinist"
• 1835-1837 - "Tales told for children"
• 1838 - "The Steadfast Tin Soldier"
• 1840 - "A picture book without pictures"
• 1843 - The Nightingale
• 1843 - "The Ugly Duckling"
• 1844 - "The Snow Queen"
• 1845 - "Girl with matches"
• 1847 - "Shadow"
• 1849 - "Two Baronesses"
• 1857 - "To be or not to be"

ANDERSEN Hans Christian (Hans-Christian Andersen, 1805-1870) - Danish poet, adjoining the romantic school. His fairy tales are one of the most significant phenomena in world literature of the 19th century. R. in the family of a poor shoemaker, in the ancient Danish city of Odense, which has preserved many medieval customs.

In terms of genre, the work of G.Kh. Andersen is very diverse: novels, poems, plays, travel essays, autobiographical prose, but it is fairy tales that make up the bulk of his literary heritage and it is they that brought him world fame. They were not immediately perceived and appreciated, the author was criticized for spelling errors and innovation in style, for the fact that his fairy tales were supposedly lightweight for adults and not edifying enough for a children's audience. Interestingly, the physicist Oersted, far from the world of literary criticism, immediately after the release of the first issue of fairy tales, saw the talent of their author and prophetically noted that it was this genre of fairy tales that would make Andersen's name immortal.
In total, he published 4 collections: Tales Told to Children (1835–1842), New Tales (1845–1848), Stories (1852–1855), New Tales and Stories (1855–1872). They include 156 fairy tales - this is all that Andersen wrote in this genre. Each of these collections is a complete whole.

The beginning of his work as a storyteller is considered 1835, when the writer began to process fairy tales he had heard in childhood. m was emphasized and their own original manner of narration - as they would tell their children. Edward Colin, in his book about Andersen, recalls that the writer often, entertaining children from families he often visited, told them stories that he either invented himself or took from famous fairy tales, but at the same time diversified the old story with his jokes, humor, interesting facts. Children and adults liked these oral stories of the writer very much. Thus, a personal style was found for the fairy tale genre, popular in the era of romanticism. The difficulty of its implementation was that it was necessary to translate oral speech into written language. To do this, Andersen had to create a new written language.

The writer did not immediately understand the value of the new genre he had chosen, but the success of his fairy tales not only among children, but also among adults suggested to him the idea of ​​using fairy tales to convey ideas to adult readers: “Now I tell from my head, I grab an idea for adults - and I tell for children , remembering that father and mother sometimes also listen and they need to be given food for thought!”

From now on, the famous “iceberg” principle will operate: the plot, language and fairy-tale environment are for children, and ideas, the depth of content are for adults, for those who read a book to them. This imparted to fairy tales a special naivety and spontaneity close to children, and at the same time created a second, philosophical plan, which is inaccessible to children, but helps adults to comprehend them. Andersen developed this original form of narration gradually, reaching perfection after 1843. This is confirmed by the tale: “The Bride and Groom”, “The Ugly Duckling”, “Spruce”, “The Match Girl”, “The Collar”.

Fairy tales of the second period of creativity will consider old topics at a higher philosophical level: the fairy tale “The Nightingale” develops the ideas of “The Swineherd”, written in the first period of creativity, about the true and imaginary values ​​of human life; in The Snow Queen, the theme of devotion, sacrificial love, active kindness, considered by the writer earlier in Wild Swans, will be repeated, but significantly supplemented. He saw and with persuasiveness sang the strength of spirit of earthly fragile girls. Such as Gerda from The Snow Queen or Elsa from The Wild Swans, whose selfless heroism and sacrifice overshadow the deeds of mighty heroes. The feat of sacrifice and devotion is accomplished by inconspicuous girls, whose souls are permeated and moved by great selfless love, which carries millions of children's hearts with it. The romantic conflict between the individual and society, an outstanding person and the crowd, considered by the writer in the fairy tales of the 1930s, will be further developed in the fairy tale The Ugly Duckling (1843), which can be read as an ordinary children's fairy tale about animals and as an autobiographical work. The tale "Spruce" is about the meaning of life, about the joys of everyday existence. About naive dreams, about loneliness. Before us is the life of man. Not seeing his own happiness, postponing the beginning of real life until tomorrow. The same theme sounded in separate fairy tales of past years, for example, in the Garden of Eden, but now it is becoming deeper and more meaningful.

The stories told by Andersen in the 1940s and 1950s become much simpler in terms of plot, the connection with folklore is sharply weakened without prejudice to the writer's artistic goals, and later becomes completely imperceptible. He parted with wizards, fairies, queens of imaginary countries, the undead of forests and waters, he is attracted by the environment, people of flesh and blood, with their anxieties, joys, troubles, with their virtues and imperfections, with their difficult fate. He spoke about it this way: “There are no fairy tales better than those that life itself creates.” Now the writer has parted with fabulous props and invariably happy endings.

The author makes everyday objects the heroes of his stories and fairy tales: old collars thrown away by the hostess, a rusty darning needle. These are the inhabitants of the poultry yard, rats, mice, dried spruce, etc. Andersen confidently endowed inanimate objects with human properties. And most importantly - with the soul, thereby opening for its reader a previously unknown world, diverse in its manifestations, arousing interest in flowers and trees, a worn coin, an old darning needle, a bottle shard. Everyone has their own story, destiny. Andersen needs these heroes in order to tell people about themselves. He brought to virtuosity the ability to combine two plans - magical and worldly. Most often, Andersen uses this technique for satirical purposes: humanizing inanimate objects, he ridicules and condemns not their innocent essence, but human vices: swagger, boastfulness, self-interest, arrogance. The same technique is also used to exalt the qualities most valued by him in a person: stamina, courage, fidelity, social utility.

Some fairy tales of the 40s. have a sad ending. For example, in the fairy tale "The Little Match Girl", created in the genre of a parody of a Christmas story, happiness comes to a freezing girl only in her dying dream. People passing by her mistook her for a pile of dirty rags.

An important point for understanding the writer's fairy tales, especially those written in the second period of creativity, is the fact that Andersen was a believer. His faith was organically woven into the plot of his works, often leading his heroes, performing with them those extraordinary miracles that directly pointed to their source - divine powers. The gospel, the Lord's Prayer, the angels of God and other clear attributes of the Christian faith are introduced by Andersen directly into the text, and do not pass through hints of the context, do not represent symbols and signs. At the same time, a significant amount of superstition was mixed with his faith in God.

Many fairy tales and stories of the 2nd period are similar in genre to a parable: they are polysemantic, conditional in content, they deal with the so-called “eternal” problems: the meaning of life, fathers and children, life and death, etc. An example of such a story is a fairy tale - Parable "Mother". Death in the form of an old man stole a child from the mother and the parent, in order to find out which side the abode of death is located, gives her eyes to the lake, pressing a thorn to her chest, warms it, so that it begins to turn green and bloom. She gives her beautiful black hair in exchange for the gray locks of the old doorkeeper in order to enter the magical garden of death and save her child. She herself refused to save her son when she saw his fate in the well - it was a terrible life. Worse than death. The woman agreed with God's decision: “Do not listen to me when I ask for something, disagreeing with Your all-good will! Don't listen to me! Don't listen to me!"

Andersen not only ridicules human delusions, he tirelessly reminds too much of himself to a person who thinks about eternity. Andersen does not get tired of doing this, his later work is colored with irony, sarcasm, sadness and bitterness, he is not at all as kind and condescending as in his early fairy tales, when his heart was full of faith and hope. In many fairy tales and stories of the 40-60s. Andersen mentions the name of Jesus Christ, refers to the divine forces, the will of the creator, gives the names and quotes of prayers, etc. Such works in Soviet times were appropriately altered and shortened. Most of all, the most famous and voluminous fairy tale of the writer “The Snow Queen” suffered from censorship. In the original, Gerda, in order to calm the snowstorm that met her in front of the Snow Queen’s palace, reads the prayer “Our Father”, etc. But even in this corrected text there is an episode when Gerda sings a Christmas psalm to Kai: “Roses are blooming ... Beauty, the beauty! Soon we will see the baby Christ!”

And each Andersen's fairy tale teaches the child something new, broadens his horizons, awakens his imagination. After reading the fairy tale "The Nightingale" why not talk to the child about China, and after reading "Galoshes of Happiness" tell the child about Denmark. I'm not saying that Andersen's The Snow Queen is perceived by children as an exciting adventure novel. This is facilitated by the bright figurative system of the Danish writer. He describes his characters so vividly that they often serve as heroes in children's drawings.

But the main value of Andersen's fairy tales is that they appeal not only to the mind of the child, but also to his heart. With the skill of his pen, the great storyteller inspires children with compassion for the Little Mermaid, admiration for the brave Gerda and the Faithful Tin Soldier. Andersen's fairy tales have another great merit - they practically do not contain violence and cruel scenes (except for the kidnapping of Thumbelina or the alleged execution of the Soldier in "Flint"). All his stories are very wise and kind. But sometimes they come with sad endings.

All the above features emphasize the new that appeared in the writer's fairy tales during the period of mature creativity. Some of the best children's tales in world literature - they are equally addressed to adults.

1 - About the little bus that was afraid of the dark

Donald Bisset


A fairy tale about how a mother-bus taught her little bus not to be afraid of the dark ... About a little bus who was afraid of the dark to read Once upon a time there was a little bus in the world. He was bright red and lived with his mom and dad in a garage. Every morning …

2 - Three kittens

Suteev V.G.

A small fairy tale for the little ones about three restless kittens and their funny adventures. Small children love short stories with pictures, that's why Suteev's fairy tales are so popular and loved! Three kittens read Three kittens - black, gray and ...

3 - Hedgehog in the fog

Kozlov S.G.


A fairy tale about the Hedgehog, how he walked at night and got lost in the fog. He fell into the river, but someone carried him to the shore. It was a magical night! Hedgehog in the fog read Thirty mosquitoes ran out into the clearing and began to play ...

4 - Apple

Suteev V.G.


A fairy tale about a hedgehog, a hare and a crow who could not share the last apple among themselves. Everyone wanted to own it. But the fair bear judged their dispute, and each got a piece of goodies ... Apple to read It was late ...

5 - About the little mouse from the book

Gianni Rodari


A small story about a mouse who lived in a book and decided to jump out of it into the big world. Only he did not know how to speak the language of mice, but only knew a strange bookish language ... To read about a mouse from a little book ...

6 - Black Pool

Kozlov S.G.


A fairy tale about a cowardly Hare who was afraid of everyone in the forest. And he was so tired of his fear that he came to the Black Pool. But he taught the Hare to live and not be afraid! Black pool read Once upon a time there was a Hare in ...

7 - About the Hedgehog and the Rabbit A piece of winter

Stuart P. and Riddell K.


The story is about how the Hedgehog, before hibernation, ask the Rabbit to keep him a piece of winter until spring. The rabbit rolled up a large ball of snow, wrapped it in leaves and hid it in his hole. About the Hedgehog and the Rabbit Piece ...

8 - About the Hippo who was afraid of vaccinations

Suteev V.G.

A fairy tale about a cowardly hippopotamus who ran away from the clinic because he was afraid of vaccinations. And he got jaundice. Fortunately, he was taken to the hospital and cured. And the Hippo was very ashamed of his behavior... About the Behemoth, who was afraid...